The members of Queen were masters at crafting songs that have lasted through generations. Members Farrokh Bulsara, stage named Freddie Mercury (Rami Malek), Brian May (Gwilym Lee), Roger Taylor (Ben Hardy), and John Deacon (Joseph Mazzello) have given millions of fans something to sing along to.

They also left a great story. There’s fame and fortune. Tragedy and death. Love and hate. Queen and the Freddie Mercury movie Bohemian Rhapsody, share a story unlike any other.

Whether or not you know the music of Queen (and you’ll know at least a few of their tunes), you will enjoy the two-plus hour movie detailing the rise and fall of a rock legend. You’ll also walk away from Bohemian Rhapsody with a wealth of leadership lessons.

Let’s look at the leadership lessons in Bohemian Rhapsody in the latest Reel Leadership article.

Quotes And Leadership Lessons From Bohemian Rhapsody

1. Be grateful for those you lead:

Bohemian Rhapsody opened with a special message to viewers. They broadcasted a thank you to everyone watching the movie.

This was really cool. The cast and crew behind Bohemian Rhapsody knew the movie wouldn’t be a success without movie-goers.

They went out of their way to send a message to those watching the movie. We got it loud and clear. They were grateful for our butts being in the seats.

This weekend, I was reminded of this while our church was at Michigan Youth Convention. The youth pastor of our church, Bruce Harrier, purchased a goodie basket for each youth leader overseeing students for the weekend.

He was grateful for those serving under him. His message was received loud and clear. He was thankful for us.

Send a special message to your team. Let them know you appreciate all of the hard work they do.

2. Freddie Mercury:

Well then, you’ll need someone to replace him.

The band Smile was playing at a local club and Freddie had gone to see them. He searched for them and found two of the band members in the alley. There, he learned the lead singer, Tim Staffell (Jack Roth), had left the band for bigger and better opportunities.

The remaining members told Freddie thanks for liking them and thinking of songs for them. However, the band was no more.

Freddie wouldn’t have any of that and saw the opportunity to join the band. He offered up himself as the new lead singer of Queen.

He knew his freak factor, as David Rendall would saw, was his advantage. Because of the extra teeth, he had more vocal range than the average person. His freak factor allowed him to be able to sing in a variety of keys.

Everyone has a freak factor. Something that people see as a weakness but can be used as a strength.

You’ve probably been hiding your freak factor. I used to.

For me, my freak factor was my love of TV, movies, and comics while trying to find my way in the leadership world. So many thought and business leaders say you have to forsake entertainment. Get rid of the TV. Or stop reading fiction.

When I finally got tired of living a lie, my freak factor elevated the work I was doing. I began using movies and television to share insights into leadership. Entertainment wasn’t the enemy people were saying it was. Instead, it became a tool to teach.

Find your freak factor. Then let your freak flag fly.

5. Think bigger:

The members of Queen were talking about the state of the band. They were selling out the small pubs around London. They felt stuck.

This is when Freddie Mercury offered up a suggestion. Queen had to think bigger. They needed to record an album.

Recording an album brought new attention to Queen. They soon began touring around the world and selling out stadiums.

Thinking bigger means you have to look outside of your current situation. You have to look past what you’re already doing. And you have to look at what you could be doing.

Look for new ways to promote your organization. Find people who might not be your target customer but could benefit from the work you do.

6. John Reid (Aidan Gillen):

So, tell me, what makes Queen different from all the other want to be rockstars I meet?

One of the record executives wanted to know what made Queen so different from all of the other aspiring rockstars he’d met in the past. His question wasn’t wrong. It was a great question to ask.

John ran into a lot of wannabes. People who thought they were good or brought something new to the table. He’s seen it all.

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By asking this question, he allowed the members of Queen to tell him what made them special. They answered the question and the next thing you know, they’re out making albums and touring.

Do you know what makes you or your organization special? By asking yourself and answering this question, you can clearly define what makes you unique.

This gives you an advantage over others. So many people and organizations are confused as to who they are or what they offer. Get clear on who you are and what you do.

7. Your best opportunity may be right in front of you:

Tim Staffell left Smile because he didn’t see the band making it big. He’d left them to go tour with a band called Humpy Bong.

I’d never heard of Humpy Bong before Bohemian Rhapsody. My guess is you haven’t heard of Humpy Bong either.

But you’ve all heard of Queen. Their songs are still played at sports stadiums around the world.

Are you considering making a move to another organization because an opportunity is presenting itself and you feel like the organization you’re at has no potential? You may want to reconsider taking the plunge (I’m not advocating you always stay at a stagnant organization).

You may be on the cusp of something great. The breakthrough may not have happened yet but it is about to.

8. Jim “Miami” Beach (Tom Hollander)

Fortune favors the bold.

Ray Foster (Mike Myers), a record executive, couldn’t see the possibility of creating a 6-minute song. He believed the song to be too long and no radio station would ever play it.

Queen had created such a song: Bohemian Rhapsody. They put so much effort into creating something special. Yet the record executive wouldn’t have any of it.

They knew they had something that would change the music world. So did their lawyer Jim Beach. Queen stood their ground and walked away.

Being a prick hurts people. Your attitude can either attract or repel your friends and business associates.

Be aware of your attitude. Be aware of how you’re treating others. And know your attitude will impact how others see you.

11. Get people involved:

Why has Queen become such an iconic band? They knew how to get people involved in their music.

Brian May was interested in creating a song the audience members could be a part of. He wanted a song people could sing along to and be an “instrument” in the song. This song became We Will Rock You.

The audience members sing. They clap their hands. And they stomp their feet. They are a part of the song.

What are you doing to get your team members and customers to feel like they’re a part of your organization? What can you do to make them feel that way?

Figure out how to get your team and customers to feel they are a part of what you’re doing. They’ll stick around.

12. John Reid:

You’re firing the wrong snake, Freddie. You’ll regret it.

Paul Prenter (Allen Leech) told John he should be the one to tell Freddie a record label wanted him to leave Queen and do a solo album. When John Reid gave Freddie the information, Freddie fired John Reid.

John was shocked. He tried to talk sense into Freddie, telling him Paul knew about this. Paul played dumb and allowed John to be fired.

This all came back to bite Freddie. Everything began to spiral downward after this.

He lost his band. He lost his friends. And he lost his health.

Leaders have to be careful who they enter into business relationships with. These relationships will help or hinder you. I’ve seen trouble arise many times from bad business relationships.

Be careful who you partner with. Their influence over you may be more harmful than good.

13. Get your act together:

Queen has many iconic songs. One of those is Another One Bites The Dust. The bass riff will get you bobbing your head and singing along.

Brian May was shown strumming the iconic bass riff for the song. Freddie walks in and says the riff is good. Brian retorts with “It would be good if the band got their stuff together.”

Organizations will struggle when people don’t have their stuff together. Personal problems, relationship problems, financial problems… They all add a layer of complexity to an organization.

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Each person brings their own baggage to work. Working through the garbage is the only way to have an effective organization.

Help your team to work through their problems. Offer up solutions. You might even be willing to offer counseling services or a Dave Ramsey Financial Peace University course to your team members.

Find ways to help people to get their act together. Especially if it’s you that needs to do so.

14. Brian May:

You need us, Freddie… More than you know.

How sad it was to hear Brian say this to Freddie. Freddie had broken the news to the Queen band members of the solo deal. This upset them and Freddie was ready to leave the band.

However, Brian knew Freddie had to hear the Bohemian Rhapsody quote above. Freddie needed the band. They were a family and they were helping him stay afloat mentally.

I believe these are words all leaders could live by. Leaders need to use good words. Leaders need to have good thoughts. And leaders need to do good deeds.

Be a leader who embodies these words.

Question: Have you seen Bohemian Rhapsody? If you have, share the leadership lessons you took away from this Freddie Mercury biopic. If you haven’t seen the movie, what leadership lessons from Bohemian Rhapsody that I shared resonated with you? Let me know in the comment section below.

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